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Jersey War Tunnels

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The Jersey War Tunnels are a reminder of the occupation of the island during World War 2. The War Tunnels are one of many fortifications that the Germans built on Jersey. The tunnels were blasted out with gunpowder and handtools, and then covered with concrete. The hospital was dug into a slope, so that it would drain naturally. Its location within the hill also ensured that the temperature remained constant throughout the year. The tunnels were originally constructed as an ammunition store and artillery barracks but the Germans converted them to a casualty clearing station as D-Day drew nearer. Today The Jersey War Tunnels are an exhibition dedicated to how the occupation affected the islanders and the island. Areas have been restored to show how the hospital looked during the occupation.

Final Outcomes
Food shortages on Jersey were relieved by the arrival of the Red Cross ship SS Vega, bringing food parcels to Jersey. Before then, substitutes had been used to replace everyday foods for instance seawater had to be replaced with salt.
Everyone in Britain was given a gas mask to protect them from gas bombs, which could have been dropped during air raids.
During World War 2, you had two choices when writing a letter: handwritten or typewriter.
In order to build the Jersey War Tunnels, a huge workforce was needed and this was supplied by the Organisation Toft. More than 5,000 slave labourers were brought over to Jersey. The men were treated harshly and known to have died from disease, malnutrition, accidents and exhaustion.
Under the occupying forces, one of the greatest hardships was the lack of news from the mainland after the Germans had outlawed the use of radio sets. A number of individuals risked imprisonment by making their own sets and spreading news.
At 3:00pm Winston Churchill gave the most famous speech of his career. The Prime Minister announced the end of the war in Europe and the “unconditional surrender of all German land, sea and air forces in Europe”. While the islanders cheered, he uttered the words, “our dear Channel Islands are also to be freed today”. Flags and decorations sprang up.
Evaluation

This series of images show a narrative of the typical objects that could have been found in a household during World War 2. Most of the images are still life because of the inanimate subject matter depicted. The sequence of the images tell a story of what it must have been like to be a citizen in Jersey from the beginning of World War 2 until Liberation Day.

The first five images are in the filter B&W punch to represent the German Occupation in Jersey. The images have high contrast between black and white making the photo very sharp. The B&W filter represents life in Jersey during the German Occupation where the people were oppressed and suffering without sufficient resources. I decided to edit the majority of my images in black and white to emphasise the historical yet cold atmosphere during the Occupation. The filter also helps to showcase the negative impact war had on the citizens of Jersey.

For my colour edits I produced two final outcomes. The last two images are in colour to represent Liberation Day in Jersey which took place on the 9th of May. The UK flag is depicted in both images to represent the freedom of the Jersey citizens.

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